


1967

by Orchidae



Series: Summer of Love [1]
Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Old Married Couple, Thomas lives to see homosexuality decriminalised, some mentions of homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-28 01:50:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20770559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orchidae/pseuds/Orchidae
Summary: It's 1967 and Barrow's retirement is long overdue.





	1967

George Crawley, the 8th Earl of Grantham, was perplexed. It was already twenty past four and Barrow was late with the tea service. He had never been late for anything before. Even though he was getting close to eighty and wasn’t as quick as he once was, the old Butler continued to run Downton Abbey like a freshly repaired clock. The only consistent things in George’s life were taxes and Barrow who, save for a brief stint at another house, had looked after him his whole life.

His father had died on the day he was born and his relationship with his stepfather had been frosty at best and when he thought about it, Barrow was probably the closest thing he had to a father figure in his life. Barrow would always stop by the nursery and play with him and his cousins, carried them on his back as a pretend horse, and when he picked him up and spun him around it felt as though George was flying like Peter Pan. Barrow had taught him to play cricket, and to cheat at cards. He had given him his first cigarette and laughed at him when he coughed his lungs up and swore that he’d never try it again. When he had come home from the war, he had gone to see Barrow first who had embraced him so tightly he thought his ribs might crack and wept until George’s collar was soaked with tears. When he had brought his fiancée home for the first time it was Barrow’s approval he had cared about the most.

Life was much simpler now. Downton had downsized considerably in its staff, with only Barrow and Mrs Mason working full time and girl from the village who came in and cleaned part-time. With the children both away at university, George found that there were whole parts of the house that hadn’t been used in years. Perhaps it was time to sell the place. He had many offers from hotel chains and the like, or perhaps he could leave the property to the National Trust in his will. His mother would spin in her grave at the suggestion, but the place was too big for just him and his wife, and he doubted the kids would be keen on taking it on when they could be in London where all the action was.

Where the Devil was Barrow?

Resolving to find out what was amiss, George made his way downstairs. He heard voices on the stairs, one of which he didn’t recognise.

“What will it take to convince you I’m serious? Do you want me to get down on one knee? I’ll do it, arthritis be damned!” the stranger said.

“Don’t be silly, Richard.” He heard Barrow say. George peered around the doorway to the Butler’s pantry to see Barrow and another elderly gentleman struggling to kneel at his feet while holding up what looked like a key ring. The Earl ducked out of sight, not wanting to interrupt the scene.

“Thomas Barrow, will you do me the honour of moving in with me.” The other man, Richard, said. There was a pause “Please give me an answer, this is very uncomfortable.”

“Yes! Yes! Get up, you old fool.” Barrow said, laughing and crying at the same time as he helped the other man to his feet. “Of course I’ll move in with you! Are you sure, though? Are you sure you’d want to live with an old fart like me?”

“I’ve thought of nothing else for forty years,” Richard said.

George went back upstairs to the library, deciding it would be best to leave them to celebrate in peace. He had been aware of the recent amendment to the Sexual Offences Act, partially decriminalising homosexual acts between men in England and Wales. It had been a hot topic in parliament with plenty of opposition. The Earl of Dudley had told him that prison was too good for those types of people, that they enjoyed being sent there…for obvious reasons. George could have punched him. He knew about Barrow, of course. Plenty of small-minded people had warned him to steer clear of the man when he had been in his teens, and even now his peers would openly question why he would want to employ such a person, some even raising concerns about George himself. He had ignored them and made a note to never invite them over again.

Still, he had never really thought about Barrow being in a relationship with anyone. Certainly, he took his fair share of holidays and usually disappeared off to God knows where and never gave any details of how he had spent his free time. But in George’s ignorance, it had never struck him that he would be meeting someone, especially at his age. Then again, Barrow was doing remarkably well for a man his age. He still had a mind as sharp as a tack and had all his hair and teeth although his hair had gone from a sleek black to a shock of brilliant white. George gazed at his own balding head in the mirror and sighed, it just wasn’t fair. Against all odds Barrow had avoided lung cancer despite still smoking like a chimney on his breaks, in fact he seemed a lot healthier than a lot of men half his age and the old butler still held himself in a poised dignified way and his smile was still very charming and hinted at how handsome he had been in his youth.

About fifteen minutes later, Barrow came in with the tea trolley.

“I’m sorry for the delay, my lord, something unexpected came up.”

“That’s quite alright, Barrow,” George said as the butler poured him a cup.

“My lord,” Barrow said hesitantly, “I’ve been thinking and, well, I think it’s about time I retired.”

“Oh,” George had thought he had been prepared for this eventually, the older man’s retirement was long overdue. “Well, of course, I suppose I’ve kept you here for far too long.”

“Of course not, my lord, it’s been an honour to work for you. You-“ the old man was getting a little misty-eyed “You mean the world to me, sir. But my whole life I’ve had to hide who I am, and I am so so sick of it. I think it’s about time I went and lived my life on my own terms, without being ashamed.”

“Well, I hope you’ll be very happy, Barrow.”

“I will, sir. Thank you.”


End file.
